My Creations

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

re you looking for the ideal birthday gift for a friend or a child with a summer birthday? Summertime opens up all sorts of unique gift ideas for birthdays and other occasions. Here are some suggestions for great summertime birthday gifts.

High End Gifts

Summertime is a great time to get a spectacular deal on high end high-tech gifts. With everyone on the move and enjoying the great outdoors, retailers go to great lengths to bring in buyers, and discounting the good stuff is a sure draw. If you've got a school-age kid getting ready to go off to college (or back to college) in the fall, you have two great times to pick up a new laptop at bargain prices - end of school sales and back to school sales. The May/June laptop sales are likely to be deep discounts on this school year's most wanted computers - as retailers and manufacturers clear the deck for the upcoming year's next-gen in tech. That laptop that had your techie kid drooling at the start of the school year is probably high on the ‘must have' list - and chances are you can get it at up to 25% cheaper than you could in September.

Digital cameras are another high-end summer birthday gift that's sure to please - but you don't have to go high end to make someone happy. You can set your pre-teen on the road to a spectacular summer with an inexpensive digital video camera. These items are some the hottest summer birthday gift items going. Give your summer birthday gift recipient the gift of summer memories. Digital video cameras are also great bon voyage gifts for summertime travelers. They're point and shoot simple, and it's just as easy to upload to your camera for emailing and posting to blogs.

Reasonably Priced Gifts

There are plenty of gift ideas that won't break the bank. These days, everyone has so many electronic gadgets that the accessory business is exploding. A great gift that someone is sure to enjoy is an accessory for their new gadget. Whether it is an mp3 player or a cell phone, there are numerous add-ons available which will only enhance the enjoyment of using their gadget of choice.

Summer Birthday Gifts for Kids

Summer time is a great time for kid birthday parties. All you need to do is hit the seasonal toy aisle and fill a basket. Some of the best picks for summertime birthday gifts for kids include:

Fill a beach pail with an assortment of penny candy and inexpensive summertime toys from the dollar store or toy aisle. Be sure to include:A bottle of bubbles and blowing wandsAt least one inexpensive water pistol. Include two for even more funThrow and catch with Velcro paddles or glovesA paddleball

A whiffle ball and bat or other outdoor sporting goods. Summertime is the time for the great outdoors and birthday gifts that encourage activity are ideal summertime birthday gifts for kids. For the serious Little Leaguer, this is the time to invest in a new glove, ball or bat - and include a promise to hit some flies for practice a few evenings a week.- Swim toys are great summertime gifts for the 7-10 year old set, but don't get them for the younger kids. Inflatable rafts, swim rings and water games are a great summertime birthday gift, especially if the family has a swimming pool. Do be careful about buying swim toys for toddlers and preschoolers, though. They could be a safety hazard.

Summertime Gifts the Whole Family Can Enjoy

Your birthday gift from the summertime birthday boy or girl can be fun for the whole family. Here are a few suggestions for summertime birthday gifts that are fun for the whole family.

- Lawn GamesBadminton, croquet, horseshoes and other lawn games are perennial favorites. Give one as a birthday gift, and you'll be providing the whole family with hours of summertime togetherness.

- A trip to the water parkAsk any kid where they want to go this summer, and they'll all tell you the same thing - the lure of the water park gets them all. Guarantee your spot as everybody's favorite auntie with a family pack of tickets to the local water, theme or amusement park.

- A trip to the mini-golf courseMost towns in the United States have at least one miniature golf course. This is a great gift the entire family can enjoy. Everyone can spend time together outside, enjoying a "friendly" game of mini-golf.

Friday, March 12, 2010

If you are considering sewing with vintage patterns, then you will definitely want to learn the terminology. Vintage patterns come with vintage terminology, not all of which may be familiar. Here are some of the terms you might encounter.

1. Continuous Lap: A strip of fabric cut on the straight grain and used to face edges of an opening or slit in a garment.

2. Jabot: A ruffle or cravat-like accent attached to the front of a dress or blouse.

3. Lapped Seam: A seam in which one seam allowance edge is lapped over the seam allowance of its joining piece and stitched.

4. Pin tuck: Very small tucks stitched just a pin's width from the fold to slightly shape a garment piece. In the late 1920's, a series of pin tucks were often applied across the naural waistline of a frock for shaping and detail.

5. Plaits: An array of narrow (known today as "knife") pleats often applied at the hem of a dress, the ends of sleeves, or around the neck opening.

6. Shirring: Three or more rows of gathers made by small running stitches in parallel lines. The rows are spaced as desired.

7. Slide Fastener: The original term for zippers.

8. True Bias: Fabric that is cut at a precise 45-degree angle to the fabric grain line.

9. Toile: The French term for fabric pattern. Originally pertained to the muslin test garment.

Today, with the help of the internet and the popularity of all things vintage, it's easier than every to acquire vintage patterns. Sewing with the real-deal pattern in its original form is a great experience and a fun way to re-create those wonderful designs from the past. I hope the above glossary of terms will help you easily navigate the world of vintage patterns.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

I have finally listed some of my handmade crochet items to Etsy. I have been procrastinating, I'm my biggest critic. I have always made things for my children but never to sell. Today I decided to go for it. Take a look at my shop and tell me what you think.

Monday, December 14, 2009

You have put a lot of time and effort into creating the work of art that is your scrapbook. Now that you have made a scrapbook, there are still some added steps you need to take to ensure that the book lasts. If you make time to take a few precautions, your scrapbook will stay safe for many years to come. Ever wonder how museums keep historical documents and paintings intact for so long? Everything is mounted on acid-free archival paper and kept in rooms where the humidity and room temperature is monitored very closely. You don't have to go to quite that extreme; however, there are some protective measures you can carry out that will work just as well.

The first tip to keeping your scrapbook safe is to keep it dry. Humidity and liquids will ruin your scrapbook, photos, and negatives. Always store these items in a dry, sealed container. Avoid placing them in a damp basement or attic where they will be subject to severe humidity. Also, when scrapbooking, keep your drinks away from your materials and photos.

Remember that direct sunlight will damage both photos and negatives. Too much sun will even fade the cover of your scrapbook. To keep your memories safe from fading, store them where they will not be in direct sunlight often. For photographs that you want to display in a frame that will need to be in direct sunlight, consider having a copy made that you can keep in a safe album out of the sun. Having this copy will preserve the photograph even if the framed version becomes faded.

A good rule of thumb to follow when storing your scrapbooks is to think how comfortable you would be if you were the book. Books like to live where you do and if it's too hot or cold for you; chances are that it's too hot or cold for the photos in your book. Excessive heat can cause warping and sticking and the opposite will occur with extreme cold. Never store your scrapbooks in the basement or the attic.

One thing that many scrapbookers do not realize is that the oil from their hands can cause damage to their photographs over time. It is important to keep your fingerprints off your photos as much as possible. You will need to handle your photos while creating your scrapbook, but do so as little as you possibly can. Some professional scrapbookers will wear cotton gloves to work with their photos. Washing your hands frequently will help protect your photos as well.

Remember when you are working with your photos that you are not only creating an album for you to enjoy right now, but you are also creating a keepsake that you can pass on to your children and their children as well. Everything you do in your scrapbook should be done with longevity in mind. Carefully protect your pictures so that many more family members can enjoy them!

Friday, December 11, 2009

After the Second World War there followed a huge transitional period across Europe and the United States. Major reconstruction was the order of the day across Europe and, slowly, an increasing prosperity and abundance was enjoyed by the populous in these territories. It was the dawn of a new era, but it wasn’t until the 1960s that the emerging “consumer” society gave rise to a demand in goods that were simply unobtainable until then.

British pop art can trace its roots back to the mid 1950s. A small independent group comprising notable artists at that time together with critics in the art world put together an exhibition which was held at the Whitechapel Art Gallery in 1956. This exhibition was a focus on the topic of cheap consumer products and the role that they played in modern life. Although it didn’t seem like it then, the exhibition was a major step forward in the art world and a huge departure from what had gone before it. The erstwhile critic, Lawrence Alloway (1926-1992) hailed it as the birth of something new and in 1958 he christened this distinctive style of art as “Pop Art”.

Key figures in the British pop art scene that followed were Richard Hamilton (b. 1922) whose work depicted cars, pin-up models and electric appliances, amongst others. Peter Blake (b. 1932), on the other hand, concentrated on comic strips and pop singers while the magazine collector Eduardo Paolozzi (b. 1924) produced impressive collage prints by recycling and integrating old advertisement material with comic-strip images.

As for the US, during the 1950s the art world was dominated by “Abstract Expressionism”. It was until the early 1960s when art critics and American artists alike began to embracePop Art and give this new style of art their own inimitable American “take”. In 1962, an exhibition entitled “New Realists” was held at the Sidney Janis Gallery in New York. This was ground-breaking in America, not least because the exhibition featured work from artists including Andy Warhol (1928-1987), Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997), Claes Oldenburg (b. 1929), Jim Dine (b. 1935) and James Rosenquist (b. 1933). Of these, Warhol, Lichtenstein and Oldenburg went on to become key figures on thepop art world. Warhol became a household name.

Indeed, Warhol’s fame elevated in 1962 after his “Campbell’s Soup Cans” work was produced and featured in separate works - firstly as individual “cans” and then the same cans aligned in immaculate rows. Marilyn Monroe and Jackie Kennedy, possibly the biggest 60s female icons at the time, were also given the “Warhol treatment” in which he silk screened their images, altered the colours and reproduced them in repeated patterns.

Roy Lichtenstein was very much a “comic-strip” artist and produced masses of works using imagery from comics. Starting out in 1960, he painted vastly-inflated images of comic-strip frames formed from the dots of colour newsprint. During the same year, Oldenburg set about carving his own niche in thepop art world, creating large, painted plaster sculptures of sandwiches and cakes ! These were soon followed by huge plastic appliances that were softened to allow them to give a distinctive “droop”. All of it was designed explore the nature of “consumer culture” that was sweeping the nations on both sides of the Atlantic.

With mass consumer commercialism on the rise at an alarming pace (and seemingly with no end in sight) “Pop Art” remains very much alive and is perhaps even more poignant and thought-provoking today as it was even in the mid twentieth century.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

f you have just acquired an antique quilt, there are some things to watch for before you think about how to clean it. You need to look carefully at the quilt's age and condition. You also need to think carefully about whether you should wash a quilt. It is a good idea to seek the advice of a professional textile conservationist first. You can find one by contacting The American Institute for Conservation, 1717 K St. NW, Suite 200, Washington DC 20006. It is true that no matter how careful you are, you may permanently damage a quilt by washing it. You should certainly never wash a damaged quilt before repairing it.

There might be stains on your quilt, since old quilts are made of natural fibers which absorb things like body oils, liquids, soils, and other organic substances easily and over time these invisiblestains oxidize and become colored stains. That makes it difficult to know how to pretreat them. Often what we think of as blood stains are really the remains of a dead bug and these stains are nearly impossible to remove. Another problem is dye migration. Changes in temperatures will cause dye migration that results in brownstains in quilts folded and stored for years. Since, the dye has permanently stained adjoining quilt fabrics, most stains caused by dye migration can't be removed. You shouldn't even try because you can do even more damage by trying than they have already. In addition to thesestains, your quilt might have damaged scattered spots known as foxing, which is caused by the growth of molds.

If your quilt is very stained, it may be a good idea to spot treat areas with sodium perborate, the active ingredient in Clorox 2, before washing the whole quilt. Another way to spot clean is to brush a paste of Biz, Ivory Snow flakes or Shaklees Nature Bright on the stained spot and then vacuum it well with the brush attachment of your vacuum cleaner after it dries. Be careful to have all portions of your quilt equally clean. Using lemon juice to bleachstains, or laying linens on the lawn stains is not a good idea as your fabric may be temporarily brightened, but this usually turns to yellow after a while.

If you are going to display your quilt folded over a rack, and there are no holes, rips, frayed seams, stains, delicate fabrics or embellishments etc in it, you may be able to just simply air it outside on a nice warm day to remove dust and dirt and freshen the quilt. You can lay it on the lawn with a clean sheet underneath it and another on top of it for protection, especially from sunlight. If you don't have a lawn, you may hang it over a wide railing with a sheep protector.

You could also vacuum it with the brush attachment of a low powered vacuum cleaner, although you would need to put a clean fine mesh screen over your quilt first, to prevent threads and yarn from getting sucked away, if it had elaborate embellishments or damage. You want to vacuum gently, use a Dust-buster if you have one. Be careful not to pull loose material from your quilt. Hold the vacuum cleaner at least half an inch above your quilt, vacuum both sites, and repeat that if you need to. Never vacuum painted quilts since you may strip the paint off.

In summary, cleaning an antique quilt can be a challenge. A lot depends on the age and condition of your quilt, and whether it has delicate fabrics or embellishments on it. It is probably a good idea to avoid washing it if you can, although you do want to get rid of dust and dirt as much as possible. Always check with a professional textile conservationist first to see what they think about the advisability of washing it.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

If you are considering sewing with vintage patterns, then you will definitely want to learn the terminology. Vintage patterns come with vintage terminology, not all of which may be familiar. Here are some of the terms you might encounter.

1. Continuous Lap: A strip of fabric cut on the straight grain and used to face edges of an opening or slit in a garment.

2. Jabot: A ruffle or cravat-like accent attached to the front of a dress or blouse.

3. Lapped Seam: A seam in which one seam allowance edge is lapped over the seam allowance of its joining piece and stitched.

4. Pin tuck: Very small tucks stitched just a pin's width from the fold to slightly shape a garment piece. In the late 1920's, a series of pin tucks were often applied across the naural waistline of a frock for shaping and detail.

5. Plaits: An array of narrow (known today as "knife") pleats often applied at the hem of a dress, the ends of sleeves, or around the neck opening.

6. Shirring: Three or more rows of gathers made by small running stitches in parallel lines. The rows are spaced as desired.

7. Slide Fastener: The original term for zippers.

8. True Bias: Fabric that is cut at a precise 45-degree angle to the fabric grain line.

9. Toile: The French term for fabric pattern. Originally pertained to the muslin test garment.

Today, with the help of the internet and the popularity of all things vintage, it's easier than every to acquire vintage patterns. Sewing with the real-deal pattern in its original form is a great experience and a fun way to re-create those wonderful designs from the past. I hope the above glossary of terms will help you easily navigate the world ofvintage patterns.